For many years, I have visited the Rasa Malaysia blog and drooled at the recipes and admired Bee’s photograpic talent. I was thrilled to bits when Bee invited me to guest blog for her! We picked a restaurant style vegetarian mushroom tikka masala for my guest post on Rasa Malaysia.

This mushroom tikka masala recipe is easy to make and is rich with flavors of Indian spices. Read my post over at Rasa Malaysia for this mushroom tikka masala recipe and for a great tip on how to make it taste like a restaurant’s.

After youve read my guest post, make sure you hop over to Amazon and pre-order Bee’s soon-to-be-published cookbook “Easy Chinese Recipes: Family Favorites from Dim Sum to Kung Pao”. I cant wait to get my hands on a copy!

This has to be one of those recipes where I say “If I give you the recipe I have to shoot you”. Because its that good. But because I love you all, I will share this recipe with you, without any shooting involved.

Summer may be winding down, but its still super hot. This easy to make, raw, cold, refreshing gazpacho is just what you need to beat the heat. If you like this tomato and roasted red pepper gazpacho recipe, be sure to check out my other no-cook recipes.

If you are entertaining, serve the gazpacho in mini martini glasses or shooter glasses. For a more casual meal, simple bowls or mugs will be perfect.

A dollop of creme fraiche adds richness to this gazpacho. Creme fraiche is a thick soured cream from France. It tastes a little like sour cream, but thicker and richer. Substitute creme fraiche with sour cream or thick yogurt. Vegans can use coconut cream to top their Gazpacho..remember Aarti made gazpacho with coconut milk on the next food network star?! 

For some variations, check out Matt Bite’s two Gazpacho recipes. There is a gorgeous gazpacho recipe on Simple Recipes. This almond gazpacho recipe in La Tartine Gourmande looks unique. However you make it, Gazpacho is a quick, easy, no-cook summer soup that you will love. Make a meal out of it or take it along on a picnic!

Tomato, Roasted Red Pepper and Black Olive Gazpacho with Creme Fraiche

inspired by Ina Garten’s gazpacho recipe
serves about 6

2 large ripe tomatoes, roughly chopped
1 small cucumber peeled, seeded, roughly chopped
1 red pepper or store bought roasted red pepper, roughly chopped
2 tablespoons pitted black olives (or green olives)
2 cloves garlic, peeled
6 basil leaves

one 11oz can tomato juice (I used Campbells)
a few drops Tabasco sauce, or to taste, optional
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar or any other type of vinegar or lemon juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and pepper

for topping

6 tablespoons creme fraiche or sour cream
a few basil leaves cut into strips

Place tomato, cucumber, red pepper, olives, garlic in a blender or food processor. Pulse to a coarse puree. Add basil, tomato juice, tabasco, vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper. Pulse once or twice till everything is well combine. Cover and refrigerate the gazpacho. Serve chilled, topped with basil and creme fraiche. Gazpacho tastes better the next day!

Why a Turkish theme for valentine’s day dinner you ask?

When we visited Turkey, we discovered that in the touristy areas, almost every edible thing for sale was marked as either an aphrodisiac or a viagara substitute. No matter what a vendor was selling, he claimed it was good for your love life. Apricots, nuts, sweets, spices, tea…every thing came with the promise of…err…better procreative ability.

Talk about marketing technique! Sweets at the grand bazaar in Istanbul and a dried fruit stall in Cappadocia.
 
I’ve traveled enough to know that this aphrodisiac thing is a scam. But somehow during the Turkey trip, my brain made a connection between Turkish food and aphrodisiac. So when I was thinking of what to make for Valentines day, Turkish food was the first thing that came to mind

We started dinner with Muhammara – an incredibly delicious and easy Turkish dish to whip up. This dip is also called Acuka in Turkey and is also eaten in other parts of the middle east. It is slightly tart and sweet from the pomegranate and buttery from the walnuts. Muhammara is great as a dip, but it will also make a fantastic sandwich spread. There are several variations of this dish, but the main ingredients are always walnuts, roasted red peppers and pomegranate molasses. You can get pomegranate molasses in any middle eastern grocery store.

Muhammara – Turkish Walnut Pomegranate Dip
makes about 2 cups

1 cup walnuts
2 tbsp pomegranate molasses
2 large roasted red peppers (see below for how to roast peppers)
1 clove garlic
¼ cup olive oil
¼ cup dried bread crumbs
1 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp chili flakes
1 tbsp ketchup
½ tsp salt

Toast the walnuts in a skillet on medium heat, till they are slightly browned.

Put the toasted walnuts and all other ingredients in a blender and blend into a smooth dip. If the mixture is too thick to blend, add a few tablespoons of water to the blender. Serve with warm pita bread or vegetables.

How to roast peppers


Place red peppers over a direct flame – either on your stove or in an outdoor grill. Roast the red peppers on a high flame till they are completely charred on all sides. Place the charred peppers in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let the peppers steam this way for atleast 10 minutes. Using a paper towel, wipe off all the charred skin of the red peppers. Chop the peppers, discarding the seeds and membrane inside.